WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Clay Higgins (R-LA) and members of Louisiana’s congressional delegation introduced legislation to designate the Department of Veterans Affairs Community Based Outpatient Clinic in Lafayette, LA, as the “Rodney C. Hamilton Sr. VA Clinic.”
Rodney Hamilton was born in 1932 in Fort Worth, Texas, and moved to Lafayette, Louisiana, in 1948, where he would reside until his death in 2020. At the age of 17, Hamilton joined the Marine Corps and served in the Korean War. He was wounded in combat in September 1951 and was awarded the Purple Heart. After his tenure in the Marine Corps, Hamilton became a Lafayette community leader. He served in Lafayette’s city government from 1968-1972 and later founded the Southwest Louisiana Veterans Action Coalition.
As a longtime Veterans advocate, Hamilton played a crucial role in establishing the VA clinic in Lafayette, which opened in 2016. The road leading to the Lafayette VA Clinic was named in Hamilton’s honor in 2017, and local chapters of the American Legion, Military Order of the Purple Heart, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and Disabled American Veterans have all endorsed renaming the clinic as a tribute to Hamilton.
“Rodney Hamilton dedicated his life and career to serving America and Louisiana’s Veterans. He showed true passion for helping his fellow Veterans. It is fitting that the VA clinic he helped secure for our community will be named in his honor. I am humbled to lead this effort in Congress,” said Rep. Higgins. “Those who served deserve our humble gratitude, and in some way, when we name a public building after one Veteran, We the People honor all Veterans.”
Louisiana delegation members Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA), Congresswoman Julia Letlow (R-LA), Congressman Cleo Fields (D-LA), and Congressman Troy Carter (D-LA) are original cosponsors of this legislation. Read the full text here.
